Milw to south dakota....best family stops!

I will be traveling with my children (8 and 10yo) to South Dakota this summer from Milwaukee. Would love to hear must see's on the way to our destination to make the trip easier. Road stops, hiking, waterfalls, national parks, tourist attractions, kayaking tours or water rafting tours. As well as affordable hotels. Any advice is appreciated.
Also, recommendations on a decent way to get back without backtracking????

You're not going to find any whitewater anywhere between Milwaukee and South Dakota, however there are some places to canoe or kayak. One place to consider would be along the Root River in Minnesota. It runs along MN-16, which is also the Bluff Country National Scenic Byway, and easy detour that runs parallel to I-90. I believe there is an outfitter or two in Lanesboro.

The only National Park before the Badlands is Pipestone National Monument, about a 30 minute detour off of I-90 in far western MN. There are several state parks along the way, that you'll find on any good map.

Sioux Falls in the city of the same name is the major waterfall along the way.

Some other touristy roadside stops would be the SPAM Museum in Austin, the Jolly Green Giant statue in Blue Earth, the Corn Palace in Mitchell, and Wall Drug in Wall.

For a different route home, you could look at using US-20, which is 4 lanes for much of it's length across Iowa.

As far as affordable hotels are concerned -- there are several chains with budget and mid-range name brands. Wyndham Hotels has Knight's Inn, Travelodge, Super 8 and Day's Inn among its many other brands. Choice Hotels has Rodeway, Econo Lodge, and Quality Inn among its many other brands. These are my family's "go-to" lodging places. If you sign up for their loyalty programs, they award 10 points for every dollar you spend, and those points can be used for a night's stay down the road.

I would try to book hotels in advance We went once by the seat of the pants and the hotels become fewer and further apart with no vacancy when you get past I35 west plus some dumps charge over $100 since they are the only place to stay in town for the next X miles.

Highway 20 is boring but light on semi traffic and traffic in general(65mph I think is the posted speed limit). Not my thing but field of dreams is off 20.

Great River road is interesting between Lacrosse and Prairie du chien but is close to your start and end point.

To each his own.

Highway 20 is boring but light on semi traffic and traffic in general ....

Ra4miles, Maybe you should study this page, as it is eye opening. This is a perfect example of why we do not believe in generic must sees and routes.

I for one, loved driving US20 accross IA, and was disappointed that I did not have time to pull off at all the interesting places and sites I saw to explore further. Am hoping to get back there one day when I have more time.

That is why I came to this site. Hwy 20 is almost an Interstate highway here in the US. I use it to avoid I80 or I90 at times, almost as fast to get from Milwaukee to Des Moines or Albert Lea. If I was crossing Iowa to see the sights in the northern half I would take 3, 18 or 9. They are two lanes and you go through almost all of the towns and see a lot more. If you get back to Iowa or the midwest I have many routes to take. My response was being from WI and it looked like there is not much in the way of "Road stops, hiking, waterfalls, national parks, tourist attractions, kayaking tours or water rafting tours" in this area. Someone else stated US20, I was just chiming in. A lot of times I could not even tell you the route I took. Take a right, take a left and keep heading in the general direction on back roads until I am close to my destination.